OREANDA-NEWS. Ms. Christine Lagarde, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), made the following statement today in Santiago at the end of the “Conference on Challenges for Securing Growth and Shared Prosperity in Latin America,” which was co-hosted with the Ministry of Finance, Government of Chile:

“It has been a tremendous pleasure to host a high-level regional conference with the Finance Ministry of Chile these past two days. I would like to express my deep appreciation to President Michelle Bachelet, as well as to Finance Minister Alberto Arenas and his colleagues, and to Governor Rodrigo Vergara of the Central Bank of Chile and his team. My visit to Chile was a tremendous opportunity to meet with them and, in addition, with regional finance ministers and central bank governors from the region, private sector representatives, university professors and students. I also had a wide-ranging discussion with a highly impressive group of Chilean women leaders.

“At the conference, we discussed the key issues facing the region, including how to boost slowing growth, improve education and infrastructure, and how to promote the policies for more balanced, inclusive, and sustainable growth. After almost two decades of impressive growth that helped lift millions of people out of poverty, Latin America is experiencing a double transition: first, commodity prices are falling and external financing conditions are becoming less favorable; second, a rising middle class is demanding better public health services, education and infrastructure.

“The policymakers and delegates who gathered in Santiago agreed that, given the economic challenges ahead, we need to break through capacity constraints and further develop human capital across the region. Many lessons emerged from countries in the region that have had some success grappling with these issues. We all take away new ideas and inspiration to consider for policymaking over the years to come. I also see Santiago as the beginning of an important conversation in the region, and I look forward to maintaining and building upon this important dialogue into the IMF and World Bank Annual Meetings on our road to Lima, Peru, next October.

“Let me conclude by underscoring how much the IMF values the input and views of Latin Americans, who like others throughout the world, are striving to implement policies that best promote growth, job creation, and broader prosperity for all. We can build upon this shared vision.

“Once again, I would like to express my profound gratitude to the government and people of Chile for their gracious hospitality. Their support was an indispensible contribution to the success of this regional conference.”